Slow Burn
by justagirl8225
Summary: Elena Gilbert really should have known better than to expect normalcy in a place like Mystic Falls. Season 3 AU. Rated T for now. Elejah.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: **Not mine and never will be, if it was Elijah would be a series regular. Or, at the very least, the Originals would have their own show.

**Notes: **Consider this as an A/U following Season 2. Pairings, for the most part, are undecided but expect for Klaus, Rebekah and Elijah to appear at some point, and probably soon.

.

.

.

Elena's not even sure how it happens… or if it's a combination of giving up and Caroline's persistence, but somehow the brunette teen had found herself saying yes. It's a decision that she didn't entirely regret because maybe there was a _tiny _part of her that missed being normal, but there was another part of her that didn't exactly appreciate being woken up at 6:00 a.m. in the name of early morning cheerleading practice. Yes, cheerleading practice because Caroline had managed to cajole and plead with both Bonnie and Elena; a mixture of sweet talking, bargaining and something else that was just _purely_ Caroline Forbes. Whatever the method, it had worked. And that was why, instead of sleeping in on weekday mornings in the summer and being a carefree teenager; Elena was taking a quick shower and mentally reminding herself that she needed to schedule her senior class portrait soon (in a voice that suspiciously sounded like Caroline) and think about homecoming weekend.

Maybe cheerleading wasn't such a bad idea because, as Caroline had insisted, it was their senior year of high school and after what they'd gone through last year; maybe they were entitled to a little bit of normalcy… or as normal as they could get, Bonnie had added rather dryly. And with Jenna dead, Stefan still gone and her relationship with Damon strained, maybe a little bit of normalcy was just what Elena needed.

Or maybe not, Elena thought to herself, the brunette rolling her eyes a little as her phone began to ring; with one hand she grabbed the beckoning object and with the other shimmied into a pair of sweatpants emblazoned with Mystic Falls High. Somehow she managed to hold a quasi-conversation with Caroline while continuing to get dressed; Elena grabbing her already packed gym-bag from the floor as she exited her bedroom.

With exactly three weeks before school started again, Elena Gilbert was prepared to start over, or at least as much as a place like Mystic Falls would allow. But not even the chaotic events of last year could have ever prepared her for what was to come this year.

.

.

.

.

**A/N: **I realize that I have left my other story in this fandom untouched and I do hope to remedy that shortly. Anyway, I'm not sure as to when updates will happen for this story or that one but we'll see what we see.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: **Not mine and never will be, if it was Elijah would be a series regular. Or, at the very least, the Originals would have their own show.

.

.

.

Elena met Caroline and Bonnie at the football field, the two already stretching in preparation for their morning cheerleading practice. Just as Elena had joined her two friends, a newcomer joined the fray, Caroline eyeing her with interest.

"Coach says that she's new to Mystic Falls… a transfer student," Caroline revealed in a soft tone, voice nearly dropped to a whisper. "Didn't catch her name though, but I do know that she's a senior and she wants to be on the squad."

Bonnie eyed the new comer with more suspicion than curiosity, "are you sure that she's new?"

Caroline nodded , voice confident, "of course. Believe me Bon, I'd know if she was at Mystic Falls High before." She smiled brightly, "give me some credit… I'm not that oblivious."

Elena smiled lightly, "we should probably introduce ourselves, don't you think?" Readjusting her ponytail, Elena set about to do just that, only to be stopped by Bonnie.

"'Lena..." Bonnie began hesitantly, the corners of her mouth twisted slightly into a contemplative frown, "I have a bad vibe from her. I can't explain it, but I just… there's something about her."

"Bon, you say that about everyone," Caroline trailed off with a laugh, "I'm sure she's not that bad. Maybe you're just getting some sort of Gossip Girl vibe or whatever."

Elena glanced between the Bennet witch and the newcomer briefly before her gaze met Bonnie's, "what kind of bad vibe? Like an end of the world bad vibe or a troublesome bad vibe?"

Bonnie shook her head, "I can't say for certain just that there's something not quite right about her."

Caroline took it upon herself to redirect the conversation to Homecoming weekend, reminding Bonnie and Elena that they needed to go dress shopping for the occasion and that they should probably go soon. Elena's 18th birthday was also brought up though Elena insisted that she didn't want a big deal made.

Meanwhile from the fringes of the field, Rebekah Mikaelson continued to eavesdrop on the various conversations, the newly arrived vampire having recently been awoken by her older brothers and then subsequently taken to Mystic Falls. As her elder brother Niklaus informed her earlier, Bonnie would be troublesome and would eventually need to be dealt with. With some persuasion, Caroline might be coaxed to her side.

And then there was Elena Gilbert… the Petrova doppleganger and the source of her brother's obsession.

Rebekah didn't know why Niklaus was fixated on Elena but she knew that Elena was important. And if Elena was important to Nikalus, then by proxy, Elena was important to Rebekah.

.

.

.

**Notes: **chapters are still going to be on the short-ish side and mostly filler in nature so I can set the stage. Once I have everything set up to how I want, the plot will fully kick in.


End file.
